Treylon Burks holds an important position as arguably the most highly-touted Pro Hog in the NFL right now.
The 18th overall pick in the 2022 NFL Draft, Burks remains the most recent first round pick to come out of Arkansas, and he’s one of just two such prospects in the last 15 years, alongside center Frank Ragnow.
But for his current team, the Tennessee Titans, the third-year wide receiver also plays a key role – or at least, he should be. The Warren, Ark., native was brought in to immediately replace outgoing star receiver AJ Brown, who had just been traded to the Philadelphia Eagles. In fact, it was the first round pick the Titans got from that same deal that they used to select Burks.
Brown was a Titans fan favorite, which made that decision unpopular to begin with. Burks’ disappointing production during his time in the NFL so far has only made things worse. He put up a respectable 444 receiving yards in his rookie season, but dropped off to just 221 yards last season.
Granted, the south Arkansas native dealt with some injuries and only played 11 games in each of those seasons, but his career average is still just 27.8 yards per game – hardly anything to write home about for a first round pick.
Through two games this year for the winless Titans, he’s caught just one pass for two yards. What in the name of those renowned Warren tomatoes is going on here?
Treylon Burks Taking Heat From Analysts and Titans Fans
NFL analyst Matt Waldman’s flaming critique of Burks made the rounds on Twitter earlier this week, with Waldman claiming he “doesn’t know how” to attack contested deep balls.
Angry Titan fans chimed in on the clip in the replies, calling Burks a “schmuck” and a “bum.” Ouch.
Fortunately, there were others who recognized that, upon closer inspection, this pass falling incomplete really isn’t Burks’ fault.
It’s a pretty clear under throw from quarterback Will Levis, and it’s also in double coverage. The Titans are up 7-0 and have a first down on this play – why on Earth did he feel the need to throw up a prayer like that?
Levis Not Willing Titans to Victory
The Levis angle is one that deserves more dissection, as it continues the recurring problem of mediocre quarterback play that has plagued the Titans ever since Burks was drafted, and long before that. Former signal caller Ryan Tannehill led the team for a few years, falling short in the playoffs multiple times before eventually being benched for a Levis, then a rookie, last season.
The Kentucky product, too, has been far from impressive during his time as QB1. This season, he has put up just 159.5 passing yards per game, thrown more interceptions than touchdowns and averaged a measly 5.3 yards per attempt. That puts him as one of the worst-rated passers in the league.
In these performances, Levis has also managed to throw a laughably bad interception that went viral on social media. In week one, it was a game-ending pick on the game’s final drive that sealed defeat. In week two, it was a boneheaded decision on 3rd and goal that prompted his head coach to ask him what the **** he was thinking.
It doesn’t get much better than that, as far as interceptions go. This is what Burks is dealing with from the quarterback spot – but I guess it’s to be expected from the guy with his own line of mayonnaise-scented cologne.
Burks Capable of Doing More, But Needs Help
Quarterback play can make or break a team in football, and it can especially make or break a young wide receiver’s performance. The Waldman tweet was a scathing critique of Burks’ contested catch abilities, but that’s something that we’ve seen him do time and time again throughout his career, both at Arkansas and with the Titans:
His technique also drew praise from former Pro Bowl wide receiver Dez Bryant in the offseason, who said he did a “great job” on a particular route in training camp.
Burks is certainly not free of all criticism – his injury record has been a hindrance, and he’s struggled to get separation on his routes to get more targets. But it’s also safe to say that he wouldn’t be struggling to this extent if he were in a better situation.
The Titans traded away an elite WR1 and tried to immediately fill his shoes with a rookie wide receiver, while also not improving the mediocre quarterback room. What exactly did they think was going to happen? They’ve tried to rectify the situation by bringing in big-name wide receivers like DeAndre Hopkins and Calvin Ridley in the last couple years, but it’s been to no avail.
Hopkins is well past his prime while Ridley is playing football for the first time in over a year after a lengthy suspension for gambling – and he’s having to knock off the rust in an offense led by one of the worst starting quarterbacks in the league.
Treylon Burks’ rookie contract expires at the end of next season, so the clock is ticking on him to figure things out. Hopefully a signal caller who doesn’t smell of mayo will come along and make that process easier for a former Razorback who deserves better.
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Treylon Burks’ game-breaking highlight reel from the 2021 season:
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